Poll: 53% Israelis support extrajudicial killings

Israeli leaders have called on security forces and civilians to shoot suspected Palestinian attackers on the spot [EPA]

Some 53 percent of Israelis have expressed support for the extrajudicial killings of alleged Palestinian attackers on the spot, even after their arrest and when they "no longer pose a threat", according to a new poll.

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Published by the Israel Democracy Institute, the poll's findings reflect hardening attitudes among Jewish Israelis at a time when unrest has spread throughout Israel, the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip.

The poll examined the attitudes of Israeli citizens - both Jewish and Palestinian citizens of Israel - as tensions and unrest soar amid growing violence.

The study was conducted over two days in late October and interviewed 600 adults.

It also found that 80 percent of Israeli interviewees believe that the family homes of alleged Palestinian attackers should be demolished.

On Sunday, a Palestinian allegedly attempted to run over a group of Israelis near an illegal Jewish settlement in northern West Bank, injuring four. He was shot dead by Israeli forces, according to an Israeli army spokesperson.

"Politicians and senior police officials are not assisting to defuse tension and calm the public," the statement reads.

But speaking in Tel Aviv on October 8, Deputy Defence Minister Eli Ben-Dahan said civilians should "prevent" attacks by using guns against suspects.

Ben-Dahan's call to arms came just days after Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barakat said, "[Israeli] weapon owners who know how to use them should carry them."

Rima Awad, a member of the Coalition for Jerusalem, a Palestinian rights group, accused Barakat and other politicians of "incitement" against Palestinians.

"Palestinians living in occupied East Jerusalem are unarmed," she told Al Jazeera. "[Barakat] is inciting against an unarmed population living under occupation by asking civilians to carry guns and shoot us."